


I Can Put Your Doubts to Rest

by reversustenebris



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, Kinda, M/M, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining, Smoking, Trans Zuko, coffee shop AU, nonbinary toph, sokka is oblivious, that's not mentioned in the fic i just wanted it to be known that he is in this fic, the setting is modern day but bending still is a thing, written with barista certified experiences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:34:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24742393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reversustenebris/pseuds/reversustenebris
Summary: Zuko is not thrilled to be transferring to his old store and leaving his friends behind. He is even more unamused by his new coworkers, because he's not here to make friends, ok? He just wants to get his paycheck and leave.That is definitely not going be easy, though, considering how quickly he (unfortunately) fell for one of his new "friends".
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 23
Kudos: 577





	I Can Put Your Doubts to Rest

**Author's Note:**

> i would just like it to be known that i am a starbucks barista and have been for a while, so this shit should be accurate. i have the knowledge and the bad customer experiences to back it up. i do not speak for starbucks corporate and if somehow someone from corporate is reading this: fuck u treat ur employees better :)
> 
> title comes from Cold Cold Man by Saint Motel and isn't really super relevant but that song makes me think of zukka

Zuko sits in his car and stares at the front doors of the building in front of him, weakly attempting to see what’s going on through the window. He’s crunched up in the front seat, chin resting on the steering wheel as he deliberately ignores both the fact that his first shift at his new Starbucks starts in fifteen minutes, and that he is moping about it like a teenager. He told himself he wouldn’t regret transferring, and that’s mostly true, but he’s already missing the conversations he would have with Mai and Ty Lee on slow evenings, and now he’s moving to even slower evenings with a bunch of strangers. His new store doesn’t have a drive thru, the seating area inside is cramped, and the nearly empty parking lot tells him all he needs to know about how much business this store gets.

A glance down at his dashboard clock tells him to get his shit in gear and he grabs his poorly-bundled apron before climbing out of the car, staring at the gray sky as he wanders his way towards the door. It’s ridiculous how fitting the weather feels, and he knows that he is being way too over dramatic right now and yet he can’t bring himself to care because he thinks he deserves to mope a little.

He pulls open the door and thankfully avoids any notice as he gathers his surroundings. The cafe is small, cramped tables and chairs placed haphazardly in any open space, while stands piled with towering mountains of bagged coffee beans and over-priced cups are placed in seemingly random spots around the store. There are three people behind the counter: a girl with long, dark, braided hair who has her eyes locked on the espresso machine in front of her, a girl who looks to be around Zuko’s age that has incredibly well done makeup is standing behind the register, counting the money from a till, and the third is a boy also around Zuko’s age, absentmindedly watching timer on the oven in front of him, clicking the tongs in his hands together like a crab. Zuko can’t see his face but he also has his hair pulled up in a style similar to Zuko’s, though Zuko’s is definitely longer, and Zuko is vaguely intrigued. The cafe is empty except for two kids, young high school aged for sure, who are sitting on the raised counter by the bar and doing homework.

The peace of the quiet store and the soothing, familiar smell of coffee is immediately ruined when the boy at the ovens opens the door and pulls out a ball of fire that Zuko can tell used to be a chocolate chip cookie. 

“Oh holy fuck!” the dude shrieks, and he frantically starts looking around for somewhere to put it, to no avail, and the fire is slowly spreading down the cookie and it would honestly be funnier to Zuko if it weren’t a little bit legitimately frightening to see something on fire less than five minutes after walking into his new workplace.  
The girl behind the espresso machine looks up with a start. “Sokka, what the fuck did you do? She says, frozen in place the same way as the other boy.

“Katara, do you seriously think I did this on purpose?” Sokka snaps in return, lightly waving the cookie around in a weak attempt to put it out.

“Do you all seriously think now is the time to be arguing?” says the girl behind the register, though she doesn’t look very bothered.

The girl behind the espresso machine, Katara, apparently, turns on the nearest sink and Zuko watches as she slowly gathers the pouring water into a ball in the air in front of her, but it’s taking a while, as most of the sink’s water pressure is directed elsewhere, and she’s clearly frustrated.

Zuko huffs out a sigh and walks up the counter, setting his bundle of apron on top of the pastry case before grabbing the tongs out of Sokka’s hand and carefully smothering the flaming cookie with his hand, putting it out. Sokka stares at him and he opens his mouth to speak but before he can say anything an orb of water the size of a basketball splashes into his empty hands, soaking him as Zuko smoothly steps back.

“Katara!” he shrieks, and as he’s storming over to her, shouting profanities that are definitely not work appropriate, Zuko notices that Katara does not look guilty at all.

The girl behind the counter, Suki, according to her nametag, looks up for the first time since Zuko’s arrival and glances at the apron in his hands before looking down at the schedule sheet in front of her. “Oh you’re the new guy, uh…” she squints at the schedule, “Zuko?”

“Yup.”

Suki sighs but she doesn’t seem upset, just resigned. “Welcome to the shitshow, Zuko.”

\-----

Zuko has not been clocked in for more than five minutes, and he’s standing lost behind the counter while Suki is in the back figuring out where he’ll go, when what looks like a pebble hits him in the shoulder before falling to the floor. He looks over to see the two kids at the counter staring at him.  
“...Hello?” he offers, bending down to pick up the pebble. On his way up, it zips out of his hand and over to one of the kids, who is wearing a dark green hoodie and has tied up hair that’s about as dark as Zuko’s. The kid puts the pebble into a matching dark green bag that’s resting on the counter in front of them, and based on the lumps Zuko sees, he’s pretty sure that bag is straight up just full of rocks.

“Hi!” exclaims the second kid, dressed in similar, comfy clothes, though they’re colored a warm, golden yellow. His head is shaved and he’s got the signature blue tattoos of an airbending master, and Zuko is impressed because this kid cannot be older than sixteen. “I’m Aang!” he says, before nudging the kid next to him, who looks unimpressed. “This is Toph.” Toph gives a short nod before pulling a few pebbles back out of their bag, aiming them at Sokka’s head this time. 

Zuko is slightly endeared. “I’m Zuko,” he says on his way over to their space on the counter. “Are you guys regulars?”

Aang smiles impossibly wider. “Yup! We go to school with Katara!”

“It’s nice to meet you both,” Zuko says, cordially. He has no issue making friends, but he knows he’s intentionally, selfishly trying to avoid coming to terms with his transfer. It’s easier to just do his job, not make friends. It didn’t work out for him last time, anyways.

Before Aang can say anything else, Suki is dragging him to an espresso machine. “You good on making drinks?” she asks. 

Zuko tries not to feel a little offended at that. “I’ve worked here for over a year.”

“Oh great!” Suki says, “I have to go file an incident report, and Katara needs her break. Stay out here and help Sokka in case we get any customers?” She says, though her tone makes Zuko feel like he will not have any customers to deal with. 

Zuko nods before turning to his espresso machine, rinsing it out in a futile preparation for any future drink making. He feels eyes on him and turns around to see Sokka leaning against the opposite side of the counter, looking at him curiously. Zuko does not appreciate the staring, though he gets it plenty, but he can’t help but appreciate Sokka’s… well, everything, and he internally hits himself for starting this shit again.  
“Thanks for putting out my cookie fire,” Sokka offers, staring more intently at Zuko. “You a firebender?”

“No, I’m just reckless.” Zuko deadpans.

“Really?” Sokka asks, and he glances down at Zuko’s hands in an attempt to see if they’re burnt.

“I can’t even see this dude and I know he’s bullshitting you,” Toph calls out from the counter and Sokka scoffs at Zuko, looking offended when Zuko gives him a ‘what can you do’ shrug.

“Sorry, thought the eyes and the clothing and the everything about me would be enough,” Zuko says, turning back around to check his inventory on syrups and milks. Sokka is definitely his type, he figures, though maybe a little… dumb, but Zuko thought that last time and now he’s at a new store and all of his ties have been uprooted and he hides his frown by leaning over to inspect the inside of the nearest fridge. 

Sokka does not seem fazed by the sarcasm. “ Why’d you transfer?”

“Commuting issues,” Zuko says easily. Toph hums some disapproval from his right and he pointedly ignores them. 

“Oh, sorry about that,” Sokka says, and he does sound sincere, so Zuko stands up and turns back around. “I know it’s hard to transfer. How long did you work at your old place?”

“A year and a half, roughly.”

Sokka looks sympathetic, which Zuko doesn’t really appreciate. “I hope you can get settled here. Are you a closing shift kinda guy?” Zuko pointedly glances at the darkening sky outside of the windows before nodding. “Nice, me too!” Sokka says, ignoring the snark. “Suki is our closing shift manager, the whole gang’s already here!”

“What about the other girl, uh…” Zuko pauses and he already feels guilty for forgetting, “Katara?” he tries.

“Oh Katara? She works afternoons and pre-closing. Her shift’s off soon anyways.” Sokka says with a look at the nearest clock.  
“Do you know her well?” Zuko asks.

“She’s my sister, so I would hope so.” Sokka says with a laugh.

“Wow,” Zuko says, looking over where Katara is chatting with Aang and Toph, “I couldn’t imagine working with my sister.” He regrets saying that, because that’s none of Sokka’s business, but Sokka seems to tell.

“It’s not great.” Sokka jokes and Zuko smiles a little bit, which feels a little weird on his face if he’s going to be honest. Sokka smiles in return, but his attention is pulled away by a lone customer coming in, and he’s off down the counter chatting with the newcomer. Zuko is surprised when that makes him a little unhappy.

“I hope you’ll be good to Sokka,” Toph says, startling him out of his little stupor.

“What?”

“You heard me.”

\-----

Zuko’s been working at his new store for around two weeks now and he’s picked up on most of what they’ve got going on, he thinks. Aang and Toph loiter until Katara gets off work, and she takes them home. Sokka prefers working with customers over making drinks, which is fine with Zuko, because customer connection is not his strongest skill by a long run. He gets along well with Suki, though she has to spend most of her time in the back counting inventory and organizing tills, so they have an easy, but weak, friendship. Zuko feels like he’s gotten over whatever little turmoil he had when he first got here. He’s still hesitant to get close, of course, but he actually says more than a few words at a time, which is new for him, and while he could definitely consider Sokka a friend now, he’s gotten over his weird little thing for him.

Well he thought he did, at least.

It’s around eight in the evening, and a couple comes in. They don’t look particularly unhappy but they definitely sound like it, and they put in their overcomplicated orders, and their mood turns even more sour when Sokka reads back their total.

“That can’t be right!” the girl snaps, “It’s just two drinks!”

Zuko has a feeling Sokka has dealt with this kinda thing before, but to be fair, most of them have, and he trusts him to deal with it as he turns his attention back to making their drinks, absently listening in.

“Well, unfortunately, adding extra syrup pumps and espresso shots, as well as using one of our alternative milks, will raise the price. I can remove some of those modifications for you if you’d like?”

The girl does not take that well. “If I’d like? Why the fuck are you asking? Why do you motherfuckers always act like the stupidest cashiers on earth? Take the charges off! It’s ridiculous that you charge that much!”

Sokka does not take as well to the swearing as he did the original complaint, and his steady customer service voice starts to waver. “I’m really sorry, I don’t set our prices, corpora-” Sokka had been looking all over to avoid making eye contact with the girl in front of him, and he glanced over at Zuko only to see that the pitcher of milk Zuko was about to steam was boiling over in Zuko’s hands, who was ignoring the burning milk pouring out of the pitcher in favor of glaring at the girl across the counter.

“Yo, Zuko,” Sokka says while waving a hand at him, “You’re spilling shit.”

Zuko looks down at the pitcher in front of him before setting it down, wiping the scalding milk off of his hands on the front of his apron. “I’m really sorry,” he starts, not sounding sorry at all, “but I’m not going to be making these drinks for you at all if you are going to treat my coworker like that.”

The girl looks like she is definitely about to argue, but her partner behind her looks like he couldn't care less about what’s going on, and Zuko definitely just huffed a little bit of smoke out of his nose, and she decides it’s best to grab her partner’s hand and storm out the side entrance.

“Thanks?” Sokka offers as Zuko is running his hands under some cold water. He’s good, and he knows it, but he’s not ‘handling boiling milk without protective gear’ good. Sokka is a little bit farther away from crying but he’s still a little freaked, and seeing that Zuko probably just hurt himself isn’t helping.

Zuko grabs a rag to clean up the spilled milk before turning around to face Sokka, and he gives him a full smile. It’s a little toothy, and Sokka thinks he might not do it much, but Sokka can’t help but smile back as his breathing calms down. “Anytime.” Zuko says definitively. 

Zuko may be overdramatic, but he knows that show was a bit much, and he spends the rest of his shift internally scolding himself for being too obvious.

\-----

Sokka, who admittedly doesn’t spend much time around firebenders, is fascinated just simply working with Zuko, especially in the middle of winter.

Zuko will walk in, rubbing his hands together, and Sokka can see the light dusting of snow resting on his head and shoulders melt the instant he comes inside, evaporating instead of soaking his clothes. He’ll forget to grab tongs and will quickly pull food out of the hot oven with his hands. Sokka will order a hot drink for his break, and when he comes out of the back to grab it, Zuko will be cradling it in his hands, keeping it at a steady temperature.

“Are firebenders all like that?” Sokka asks Aang and Toph one day while Zuko is in the back doing dishes.

“Like what?” Toph asks, rolling pebbles around between their fingers.

“All… flashy. Showing off and that kinda thing.”

Aang glances at Toph and they have a moment, despite Toph not being able to actually see said glance.

“I’m sure they do. They’re pretty prideful, right…?” Aang trails off as his face scrunches in concentration. “To be honest I don’t really know many either.” He does. He knows plenty. He’s in school with a few, and on days that he isn’t at Starbucks, he will spend his time in the Jasmine Dragon, and plenty of firebenders show up there. Not that he’s going to tell Sokka that, though.

Sukko hums in agreement. “It’s pretty cool, at least. Not like Katara soaking me on “accident” all the time.” He says as he goes back to cleaning the countertops, giving exaggerated air quotes around ‘accident’.

He walks into the back to grab fresh rags and Toph groans and makes a show of slamming their head down on the counter.

“Dumbass.” They say as Aang snorts out a laugh.

\-----

Zuko has officially been working at this particular Starbucks for two months, and despite his best efforts, he has made new friends. He and Suki have a couple of similar classes and they’ll often bring each other study material to share, and they’ve even had a few study sessions in their store lobby. Katara is impressively smart for a senior in high school, though she isn’t quite friends with him like everyone else yet, and he enjoys talking to her during slow days. He even comes in on his days off to sit at the counter with Aang and Toph and read, or help them with their homework, which seems disgustingly domestic to him in the back of his mind but he’s not going to ignore these two kids now, because they seem to like him quite a lot for some reason.

He’s not quite sure where he lands with Sokka, though.

He likes Sokka just fine, don’t get him wrong, and Sokka is plenty friendly with him too, but Zuko can’t get over how much staring is going on there. He knows he has a scar, the scar has been on his face the whole time he’s worked there, he knows firebending is unusual around here, he gets it. But it still wigs him out just the same. There’s an air of what feels like animosity between them that doesn’t exist with his other new friends, except maybe Katara, but considering that she and Sokka are siblings, that similarity doesn’t surprise Zuko much. He’s not mad about it or anything, but he thought he and Sokka would get along better, and it’s kind of disappointing when he thinks about it too much as they work an awkward shift together, especially because it’s putting a damper on his plans to become more than just a friend to Sokka.

The whole… thing Sokka has going on with him just gets stranger after one particular closing incident.

The store is officially closed, and Suki is in the back counting tills while Zuko and Sokka clean the lobby. Sokka is dumping the old food out of the pastry case when he gasps quietly as if he got an idea before he suddenly turns around to Zuko, excitement written all over his face.

“Do you think I could fit in the pastry case?” He asks, leaning back inside as if to inspect it.

“Hypothetically yes,” Zuko says in response, wandering over to inspect the case with him. “But you shouldn’t, like, actually do it.”

“Why not?”

“Is that a serious question?”

“Yes!”

“Because you’re either going to get it dirty or you’re going to break it or you’re going to hurt yourself or, worst case scenario here, Suki sees you doing it and you will have more things to worry about than getting a little bruise from climbing into it.” Zuko says matter-of-factly.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sokka says, pushing the door to the pastry case open as wide as it goes, “I think you’re just a buzzkill.”

“Indeed I am,” Zuko says, giving up their debate in favor of leaning against the counter to watch.

Sokka manages to wiggle his way into the pastry case, though his legs barely fit, and he gives Zuko a cheesy smile as Zuko pulls out his phone to take a picture. He thinks it’s a bad idea, sure, but this is pretty good blackmail material in his eyes. Sokka has his moment before attempting to shove himself back out of the case, but his foot gets hooked on the counter as he’s almost out, and he loses the little bit of balance he had, and he’s nearly about to hit the floor before Zuko catches him.

He and Zuko are just staring at each other, and while Zuko’s used to that from Sokka, he can’t believe that he’s reciprocating it, and he can’t believe that he actually has caught a little bit of feelings for someone who thought it was a good idea to crawl into a tiny glass pastry case. Zuko is trying to figure out how to stand them both up without making this any more awkward than it already is when he hears the sound of quickly approaching footsteps from the back, and he gently drops Sokka the rest of the way down before grabbing a rag and pretending to look busy.

Suki does not look impressed. “And you’re on the floor because…?” She prompts as Sokka stares at the ceiling. 

“His apron got caught on the edge of the pastry case and kinda yanked him back and he slipped on the floor,” Zuko says, gesturing to the freshly-mopped floor for emphasis. Sokka nods emphatically.

That answer seems to satisfy Suki as she grabs Sokka by the arm and easily hauls him off the ground and to his feet before grabbing a new till and returning to the back office.

Zuko tries to give Sokka a smile, but Sokka must be too embarrassed by the fall, because his cheeks are flushed and he’s just back to staring.

Zuko cleans like nobody’s business, and they get to leave early, and Zuko is grateful for the escape from his little awkward nightmare, and he can’t believe that he’s still trying to get through to this dude.

\-----

“Katara!” Sokka whisper-yells as they stand side-by-side at their espresso machines. “Do you think Zuko is hot?”

“What?” Katara answers with a frown.

“You heard me. Do you? It’s ok if you do! I think he is!” He says, stumbling over his last few words. “Like, aesthetically, y’know? He’s got a good… look going on.” He attempts to save face, though the snicker from Toph behind her gives Katara a good idea that it didn’t work.

“Unfortunately, I did hear you. Why do you care?” Katara says, turning back towards her machine and deliberately ignoring the last half of Sokka’s rambling.

“He just seems lonely! I’m worried about him!” Sokka says, glancing over at Zuko, who’s chatting with a customer over the register.

“What in the world makes you think that? He’s friends with us, y’know.” Katara says before a brief pause. “Are you trying to hook him up? With me?”

Sokka has the decency to look a little sorry. “Yeah? You’re nice, he’s nice, you’re lonely-” That gets him a smack to the shoulder as he continues. “He’s lonely.”

“First of all, I have Aang, thank you very much,” Katara starts, looking over at Aang and giving a little wave as he looks up at the sound of his name. “And second of all, I don’t think me and Zuko would work out anyways.”

“Why not?” Sokka sounds genuinely confused.

“Wow,” Katara starts, “You are dumb. I thought Toph was exaggerating when they told me.”

“Told you what?” Sokka asks, but Katara shakes her head and gives him a look that could put Hakoda’s disappointed look to shame.

\------

Zuko is going to lose it, like, seriously lose his fucking marbles.

They had a nice, peaceful close, and he’s ready to get home and out of the snow and into his warm house because winter is the bane of his existence, but his plans to hibernate are interrupted by the fact that Sokka is currently sitting on the roof of Zuko’s car, lighter in one hand and a joint in the other.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Zuko asks, though he regrets the tone, because Sokka looks a little sad.

“We don’t hang out enough!” Sokka says before demonstrating how the lighter in his hand refuses to light, “...And my lighter is out of juice.”

Zuko groans and glances around the parking lot. “Where’s your car?”

“Katara needed it,” Sokka says with a shrug, “And she didn’t have time to come grab me.”

Zuko stares at him in slight disbelief. “So let me get this straight. You were going to get high with me, out in the cold, and then walk home through the snow? Alone?” From the look that gets from Sokka, Zuko can tell that he did not think any of this through, and Zuko feels bad for how long Sokka has been sitting there thinking about this and so he says, “Get in.”

“What?”

“Get in the car, dumbass.” Zuko snaps, unlocking his car and waiting for Sokka to hop off the roof before climbing in. The passenger door opens and Sokka throws himself into the car like he just realized that it was below freezing outside. Zuko ignores him as he starts the car and hooks his phone up, muffled rock music playing so quietly that Zuko can hear Sokka’s teeth chattering from the passenger seat.

“How are you not cold?” Sokka asks, and Zuko stares him down as he starts weaving a little bundle of flame through his fingers. “Oh. Yeah.”

“I run hot.” Zuko says as he pulls out of their little parking lot and on to the empty streets. This part of town isn’t busy on a good night, and for a Tuesday during a snowstorm, Zuko feels a little lost and alone, especially considering that Sokka is too busy freezing in the passenger seat to hold a conversation, rubbing his hands together in a futile attempt to warm them up. That feeling is unknown to Zuko, and watching Sokka struggle to get warm makes him feel guilty for making him sit on his car in the cold for as long as he did so that Zuko could tell him off, so he reaches over with his right hand and grabs one of Sokka’s, using it to deliberately heat up Sokka’s half of the car.

“...Thank you.” Sokka says quietly, and they sit in silence the rest of the ride. Zuko glances over at him once, when they’re about a mile away from Zuko’s apartment, and Sokka is just looking at their entwined hands, cheeks so red it looks like he’s dying from a fever. 

Zuko winces and starts to pull his hand away, “Sorry, I don’t know why I did that, I- I didn’t mean to get into your persona-” He stops talking when Sokka grabs his hand back.

“It’s alright.” Sokka says, still uncharacteristically quiet , and Zuko doesn’t have time to think about that anyways because he’s pulling into his space in front of his little apartment building and hustling Sokka inside and out of the cold.

\------

Sokka is an idiot. A fool. He’s been misreading Zuko this entire fucking time and now he’s sure he’s ruined it. Sokka was oblivious for a long time, sure, but now staring Zuko down as they sit on his couch, both of them wearing matching blushes, he realizes that he has been practically ignoring any real connection with Zuko in favor of trying to “help” him, and he’s surprised that he even let him into his house. His house is a whole thing on it’s own, too, and Sokka feels somewhat honored to have this glimpse into Zuko’s secretive personal life.

When Zuko first ushered him inside, leaving him standing in the entry as he went to hang up his apron, Sokka was enraptured by his apartment. It was extremely cramped, worn furniture neatly arranged in nearly every open spot on the floor. Pictures of Zuko adorned the walls, haphazardly arranged, and in most of them he’s with a kind-eyed, older man, or a young, dark-haired girl who is often wearing a scowl that could rival Zuko’s. What drew Sokka’s eye was a table tucked in the corner of the living room, which is covered in candles of different shapes and sizes, and in the center of the collection is a picture of a kind looking woman, holding what Sokka could only assume is a younger Zuko in her arms. Sokka remembers having a conversation with Zuko in which they both realized that they were missing their mothers, but before he can dwell on the portrait, Zuko comes back.

“Would you like to sit?” Zuko offered awkwardly, as if he was treating some kind of proper house guest instead of Sokka, who stood there looking like a fish out of water wearing clothes covered in coffee stains. Sokka laid his apron on the back of the couch and slumped onto the couch dramatically, happy to get his sore feet off the ground, and now he and Zuko both seem lost for words, and so he pulls the joint back out of his jacket pocket and offers it to Zuko.

Sokka isn’t sure if Zuko smokes but thankfully, Zuko takes it without complaint. Sokka’s not sure how he was expecting Zuko to light it, but he was definitely not prepared for Zuko to hold it up to his mouth and huff out a lick of flame to light the end before turning it around and holding it to his lips. Holy shit. That is… honestly kinda scary but more than that, Sokka is surprised how much that gets to him. Sokka always knew in the back of his mind that he thought Zuko was hot, sure, but for some reason he never thought about the idea that Zuko would be into guys as well, and now he’s praying for it.

“That’s fuckin’ dope,” is all Sokka says as he takes the joint from Zuko, who lets out a breath filled with more smoke than necessary. Sokka is now entirely sure that he’s showing off. Zuko gives an awkward smile that’s closer to a grimace in exchange for the compliment. 

They sit in silence, passing the joint back and forth, for a few minutes that feel like hours, until Zuko takes a deep breath and looks up from the steady gaze he had been keeping at the carpet. “What’s with the staring?”

“The what?” Sokka says as they lock eyes. Zuko looks… upset, and Sokka has no clue what the fuck he did but he knows that he feels bad about it.

“I know my scar is… a lot, but you’re the only one who is still staring. Even Aang doesn’t stare and he’s practically a child. I don’t think you mean anything by it, but if you have an issue, I wish you would just tell me instead of trying to bury it with weed.” Zuko says, his tone getting sharper as talks, “I just wish-” Zuko is cut off when Sokka barks out a laugh.

“Oh my gods,” Sokka starts, looking at Zuko incredulously, “You think I have a problem with you?” He says, earning a short nod and a frown from Zuko. “Wow, I think we’re both fucking oblivious.”

That was the wrong thing to say. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. If you don’t have a problem with me, than what the fuck are you doing? What the fuck I have I been doing? I’ve been trying to, like, catch your attention for months, but it’s obvious that I’m just some kind of freak to you!” Zuko snaps, and he looks angrier than Sokka’s ever seen him, and while he knows Zuko isn’t gonna try shit, he’s worried that the couch is going to catch if the small flames coming out of Zuko’s mouth as he rants are any indication. 

Sokka decides to diffuse the situation by closing the distance between them and kissing Zuko, risk of being burnt be damned.

\-----

Zuko was opening his mouth to continue his rant and then Sokka’s lips are on his, and he feels himself freeze in place. 

Oh damn, he really is stupid. He was really about to kick this dude out, but he’s been flirting with him for months to seemingly no avail, and now Zuko feels very validated and very lost all at the same time.

His lack of response is definitely noticed by Sokka though, who starts to pull back, apologies already coming. Said apologies are smothered by Zuko cupping his hands on Sokka’s cheek and pulling him back in. Zuko has… not had many kisses in his life, if he’s going to be honest, but compared to what he has experienced, this one is definitely the best. The months of pining leading up to it might have contributed though. The kiss is simple and sweet and not long enough and Zuko feels a loss when Sokka eventually leans away.

“I was staring at you because you’re hot you fuckin’ dork,” Sokka says with no heat behind it, “I couldn’t give a fuck about the scar, though it kinda adds to your whole vibe if I’m going to be honest with you. In a good way!”

Zuko snickers and leans against Sokka, resting his head on his shoulder. “I’m a dumbass, huh?”

Sokka leans his head against Zuko’s, bringing a hand up and pulling out the tie in Zuko’s hair so he can run his fingers through it. “I think we both are.” Zuko presses in closer to him at the touch and Sokka is pretty sure this is the most relaxed he’s ever seen Zuko in his life, and it’s adorable, but Zuko is also like a living space heater, and the snow outside inspires Sokka to wrap his free arm around Zuko and lean back until Zuko is partially crushing him as they lie on the couch. Zuko, not prepared for the movement, starts wiggling his way out of Sokka’s arms, who just hugs him in tighter. “No, don't go!” Sokka says between laughs, “You’re warm!

“I told you that I ran hot,” Zuko says before settling down and humming appreciatively at his new position. “I’m still upset about the staring.” Zuko mumbles after a few minutes of listening to Sokka’s heartbeat.

“I think I deserve that for upsetting you. Is there anything I can do to make it up to you? I feel legitimately bad, I didn’t mean to make you self conscious.” Sokka says, tilting his head up to catch Zuko’s eyes, who is currently resting his chin on Sokka’s chest and staring down at him.

Sokka’s question earns a wolfish smile from Zuko. “I’m not actually that mad. I wouldn’t have continued to flirt with you if I was. Good answer, though” Zuko says as he pulls himself up to give Sokka another kiss. “You can still try and make it up to me if you want.”

“How?” Sokka asks, feigning confusion, because Zuko is staring at him like he wants to eat him alive, and Sokka knows exactly what he wants from him.

Zuko answers by rolling off of Sokka and gracefully straightening up before grabbing Sokka’s hand and yanking him up and dragging him further into the apartment, who has no issue letting himself be pulled along.

\-----

Sokka was ignoring his cleaning duties to watch Zuko work, in awe that he managed to hook a dude like that, when an older couple wandered through the front door that Sokka forgot to lock.

“Sorry, we’re closed!” Zuko calls out. “We open at five tomorrow, though!”

“Can’t you just grab us a few drinks? It’ll be quick!” One of them says, continuing to walk towards the register Zuko was currently cleaning. “You owe us!”

“How, exactly, do we owe you?” Zuko says, and Sokka can hear his customer service voice wavering. It’s been a long, busy day, and Zuko has been on register for hours, which Sokka knows he hates. Steam is starting to come off of the previously-wet rag in Zuko’s hand.

“We’re paying customers!”

“You haven’t paid for anything.” Zuko snaps back, “We. Are. Closed” He says as he picks up the tablet they use to clock in and pointing at the time.

“Well, we’re already here!” One half of the couple states triumphantly as if there were no way Zuko could argue against that. “You can’t make us leave.”

“Oh, I can’t?” Zuko says with a leer, and, oh, that’s familiar-looking smoke coming out of his nose. Sokka would laugh at how cartoonish that is if he weren’t legitimately afraid that Zuko is about to get fired. Not that he blames him, honestly.

Sukko grabs Zuko’s hand and lightly pulls him back so that they can switch places. “I really am sorry, but if you folks don’t leave, I’m going to have to call the police. It is after hours, we are closed, and you are now trespassing by refusing to leave.” Sokka says, basically reciting their de-escalation training word for word because he’s also way too tired to really argue. He can hear Zuko grumbling behind him, and he gives a pleading look to the couple, and they storm out of the building with a huff, Sokka rushing over to the door to lock it the minute it shuts behind them. Zuko is still holding on to his hand, so he uses it to drag him in closer to kiss him.

The door to the back creaks open. “Gross.” Suki says, though her smile says otherwise. “Finish cleaning so you can go be nasty at home.”

\-----

Zuko has just gotten to work when Toph gasps dramatically from the counter.

“I knew it!” they shout, “You two idiots did get together! Your heartrates got so fuckin’ fast the minute Zuko stepped in here!”

Aang and Katara get a wide-eyed look, and questions start pouring out of their mouths, but Zuko just tilts his head in confusion. 

“Yeah?” Zuko says. The “duh” is unspoken but implied. Katara immediately whirls around to face Sokka.

“Wait, you guys didn’t know?” Suki starts, but she gets drowned out by Katara.

“You have so much explaining to do!” She shouts, a wild gesture accidentally pulling the iced coffee out of the cup in Sokka’s hands and onto his apron. “And you deserve that!” She says when Sokka yelps in surprise before practically dragging him to the back to chew him out for forgetting to tell her.

“You have bad taste, Zuko.” Toph says with a surprising amount of authority. Aang nods sagely.

“I know,” Zuko says, staring after Sokka with a smile.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for tolerating this i literally have not written anything in a year.
> 
> also the thing with the cookie catching on fire is a real thing that happens. their temperature setting on our oven makes it get too fast too quickly and they have been known to catch on fire. fun fact.


End file.
